The Black Sisters
by smartpenguin78
Summary: This is a one shot story about Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa as children. Though I continue to work on it and may add more, I do think it works on its own


The Black Sisters

Three girls walked through woods, hands clasped tightly together. They were sisters. Each with a look all her own, but sharing a common humor and a gift for causing mischief. Waiting back at the edge of the woods was their ever watchful father, Cygnus, who stared after them intently until they disappeared from sight. None of them had any interest in staying where he could see, or going back to him, thought they knew they would have to eventually. As long as they were here, they were free. In these private afternoons, deep in the forest, Bellatrix, Andromeda, and Narcissa Black could conquer the world, together.

Bellatrix, the oldest, had just turned ten and had become quite striking with her pearly skin and jet black hair. She would pick the flitterbloom whenever she saw it and wrap it around her head to make her sister's think she was being attacked by Devil's Snare. They fell for it everytime, which left her disappointed. The entire family would flock to her and try to win her attentions. They especially adored the passion that could erupt from the spindly girl whenever they pushed her a bit too far. "A proper beauty," her father would grin. He disgusted her. Bellatrix would spend nights lying awake wondering what it would be like if she never again heard his cackling laugh, or had to look in his mouselike eyes. It seemed that everywhere she went, he would know about it. Everything she did, he would praise. Every year as long as she could remember she had counted down the days until she would get her letter.

Narcissa, the youngest, was fair haired and elegant. Her breezy disposition seemed ill matched to her older sister's fire. The family found her charming, but easy to forget. "At least she's pretty," her mother would say, fussing away at Narcissa's hair and nails. Whenever she could Narcissa would run to her mother having covered her own face in mud and filth. Her mother would spend hours making sure she was once again "presentable" to the outside world. This made Narcissa smile, but even she worried because at times these rituals were all her mother would do for weeks at a time.

The middle sister, Andromeda, was eight and passive, without her older sister's passion or the younger's vanity. Her voice calming and her demeanor calm and loving it was often stated that if she didn't look exactly like her older sister no one would have ever believed she was part of the family. It was Andromeda who would shepard Bellatrix away from their father when he was having a "spell" and it was Andromeda who would fix dinner for Narcissa when their mother was out picking flowers to put into her hair. Both her sisters adored her more than anything else in the world. On the rare occasions when her mother actually looked at her she would simply say, "A waste of breeding," and look away

But when they were allowed to leave the house, and be alone together, they would shine. Bellatrix would take them far off, beyond all the brush and stumps, deep into the forest where the thick black canopy cut off the sky, and to Bellatrix any chance that their father could be watching them from above. There they built worlds out of the rock and mud. They splashed in the stream as much as possible in order to ruin the immaculate robes their mother always insisted they wore outside. They were always sure to ruin the robes, with rips and tears that couldn't be mended, or better yet, would look absolutely garish when they were. At home things were always controlled, impeccable. In this place things were different; here in the forest, delightful chaotic joy was almost within grasp.

On this particular afternoon, Bellatrix ran off ahead of her sisters, over a small hill that led to her favorite spot in the forest, a little rabbit briar. Usually when they got to the briar, the baby rabbits would come out and play, and the three sisters loved to watch them bounce around, and to see the eyes of the momma rabbit peering out from behind the briars. Then the sisters would try to reach in and pet the cutest ones. The rabbits would run away quickly, and the girls had never actually been able to pet one, and definitely had not been able to hold one. This time though, one of the rabbits jumped up into Bellatrix's hands. The girl was as happy as she had ever been watching the tiny bunny nibble at her fingers as she felt the soft fluffy fur. She started to walk back toward the trees with the rabbit in hand to show it to her sisters.

But then, she heard a loud snapping coming from over the hill and was overcome, her thoughts rushing far away from the safe place to the darkness and fear of home. As Andromeda's head popped over the hill Bellatrix relaxed, but her relief and fear and excitement had all roiled up inside of her.

Just as Bellatrix's eyes met those of her sister, a sharp blast of red light came sparking out of Bella's hands. The light caused the rabbit to explode in her hands, and engulfed the entire clearing of in such a horrible heat that the briar, the trees, and both Bellatrix and Andromeda's robes all caught fire. Bellatrix did not notice the flames burning into her skin, she just stared down at her hands unable to see anything but the bloody remains of the tiny rabbit. She started to shiver and shake, as the flames from her robes and the burning briar started to overtake her. Andromeda extinguished the flames on her own to put clothing, then rushed in and grabbed her sister and pulled her up the hill as far away from the burning briar as she could. Once she had Bellatrix out of the fire she put out the flames but could see her sister was badly burnt. "I'm going to go get help," Andromeda said. But as she started to head back up she was distracted by a loud cawing sound in a tree, when she looked back Bellatrix was so much worse off Andromeda was afraid to leave her.

Bellatrix did not notice. She could only think of how soft and alive the rabbit had been, mere seconds ago, and how now all that was left was the sticky mass that covered her hands and the front of her robes. Bellatrix threw herself to the ground and started frantically rubbing her hands across the front of her singed and bloody robes. Just as she finally stopped the pawing and turned to staring at her bloody hands, Narcissa made it up the hill.

"What's wrong? Why is everything on fire?" said the younger girl.

"We had a problem Cissy, but we should be alright. Please wait a moment while I talk to Bella," Andromeda said.

Bellatrix up from the bloody remains and that had so recently caused her so much joy and looked deep into her sister's face.

"Why," she whispered, "does this keep happening to me."

"Bella, I'm sure this type of thing happens all the time, it's just the way magic works."  
"It doesn't happen to you, or to Cissy though." Bella replied, anger starting to rise through the tears. "Only me. Always me, Ande. Why?"

"Maybe you just have.. more of it than the rest of us Bella. Maybe it just swishes around in you and has to come out. I don't know, but I'm sure they'll be able to sort it out once you go to Hogwarts." Andromeda said, putting her arms around her shivering sister and pulling her close.

"Please, promise me I won't stay like this." Bella whispered.

Narcissa helped her sister stand and started walking her over to the stream that ran near the briar. Bellatrix looked back and could see at least one of the other rabbits was still near the flames. She pulled her sister even closer and said directly into her ear. "And please make sure he doesn't know about this. You know what it will mean."

"I will try." Andromeda said, but she looked around and was certain she heard wings fluttering in the distance.

As her sisters walked over to the stream and started to wash her hands and face, Narcissa went back down to the briar where the flames had all gone out and looked into the patch. She then came bouncing up to the others, a bright smile on her face.

"Don't worry Bella!" she smiled, "It's ok, the cutest bunny is still ok!"

Bellatrix buried her head in her sister's shoulders. Andromeda held her tightly trying to force her sister to stay in one piece, not to go away as she always seemed to if she lost control. Narcissa wandered over to pick some flowers, looking back lovingly at her sisters playing by the stream. Just as the sparks went up from the edge of the forest reminding them that their time alone was over.

The sisters left the forest and returned to the place where their father left them. There he was, tall and sinister looking as always. He was plucking at his wand, which he decorated with crow feathers.

"It took you long enough girls. What happened in there?" he asked.

"Nothing," the girls said, as they always said.

"Nothing? It seemed quite the commotion from here?" he looked each girl in the face as said it. The laughed.

"I think more interesting things have happened my dears. Far more interesting things." He looked at Bellatrix and smiled his toothiest most wicked grin. "My dear girl, I think you are finally ready to meet the family friends." He walked over to her, picked her up, and threw he over his shoulder. "Girls," he shouted back to the other two, "go home now."

The three sisters looked at each other and suddenly, with a loud crack, Cygnus and Bellatrix were gone.

Far away, in front of an old manor home, they reappeared and Bellatrix Black began to cry.


End file.
